Police arrest 31 in southern N.M. drug bust

ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) - A week after about 30 people were arrested in a massive northern New Mexico drug bust, authorities took a hit at the drug trade in the southern part of the state.

Authorities served arrest warrants early Thursday morning to 31 people in Chaves, Eddy and Lea counties. Those arrested face charges including cocaine and heroin trafficking, distribution of methamphetamines and marijuana, conspiracy, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Authorities said the drug bust, which was the culmination of a five-month investigation, should significantly affect the rate of drug trafficking in the region.

The case was investigated by the FBI, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Border Patrol, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, and several narcotics task forces in the area.

In the pre-dawn raids Wednesday in northern New Mexico, more than 150 law-enforcement officers arrested nearly three dozen suspected heroin traffickers were indicted after a 10-month investigation.

Federal authorities tracked the drugs to four family organizations in Chimayo that authorities said were on the receiving end of a pipeline of black-tar heroin shipped from Mexico to northern New Mexico.

Those defendants face a variety of federal drug conspiracy, distribution and possession charges for heroin or cocaine.

Penalties for some charges range up to a $1 million fine and 20 years in federal prison.